Race to the Bowl: the SEC bowl race
Every SEC team plays 12 regular season games, and six wins is the number that makes a team bowl eligible. This page tracks all 16 of them against that line: how many wins each has, how many are still needed, and who can no longer get there. Records are entered by hand each week from published standings.
Through week 8
5 SEC teams have reached 6 wins and are bowl eligible.
KentuckyKentuckyRecord 7-14 games leftBowl eligible
AlabamaAlabamaRecord 6-24 games leftBowl eligible
ArkansasArkansasRecord 3-45 games left3 wins still neededNeeds 3 of the last 5If every game left were a coin flip: 50% chance of a bowl
AuburnAuburnRecord 4-35 games left2 wins still neededNeeds 2 of the last 5If every game left were a coin flip: 81% chance of a bowl
FloridaFloridaRecord 5-25 games left1 win still neededNeeds 1 of the last 5If every game left were a coin flip: 97% chance of a bowl
GeorgiaGeorgiaRecord 6-15 games leftBowl eligible
LSULSURecord 6-24 games leftBowl eligible
Mississippi StateMississippi StateRecord 4-35 games left2 wins still neededNeeds 2 of the last 5If every game left were a coin flip: 81% chance of a bowl
MissouriMissouriRecord 5-25 games left1 win still neededNeeds 1 of the last 5If every game left were a coin flip: 97% chance of a bowl
OklahomaOklahomaRecord 4-35 games left2 wins still neededNeeds 2 of the last 5If every game left were a coin flip: 81% chance of a bowl
Ole MissOle MissRecord 5-25 games left1 win still neededNeeds 1 of the last 5If every game left were a coin flip: 97% chance of a bowl
South CarolinaSouth CarolinaRecord 4-35 games left2 wins still neededNeeds 2 of the last 5If every game left were a coin flip: 81% chance of a bowl
TennesseeTennesseeRecord 6-24 games leftBowl eligible
TexasTexasRecord 5-25 games left1 win still neededNeeds 1 of the last 5If every game left were a coin flip: 97% chance of a bowl
Texas A&MTexas A&MRecord 4-44 games left2 wins still neededNeeds 2 of the last 4If every game left were a coin flip: 69% chance of a bowl
VanderbiltVanderbiltRecord 3-54 games left3 wins still neededNeeds 3 of the last 4If every game left were a coin flip: 31% chance of a bowl
Each step is one win. The dashed line is 6 wins, where a team becomes bowl eligible, and the track runs the full 12 game regular season. Tap a lane, or hover it on a desktop, for that team's numbers.
The coin flip line is a simple what-if, not a prediction: it assumes every game left is an even toss, which no real schedule is.
Race to the Bowl board. The same records are in the standings table below.
| Team | Record | Wins to a bowl |
|---|---|---|
| Kentucky | 7-1 | Bowl eligible |
| Georgia | 6-1 | Bowl eligible |
| Alabama | 6-2 | Bowl eligible |
| LSU | 6-2 | Bowl eligible |
| Tennessee | 6-2 | Bowl eligible |
| Florida | 5-2 | 1 win to go |
| Missouri | 5-2 | 1 win to go |
| Ole Miss | 5-2 | 1 win to go |
| Texas | 5-2 | 1 win to go |
| Auburn | 4-3 | 2 wins to go |
| Mississippi State | 4-3 | 2 wins to go |
| Oklahoma | 4-3 | 2 wins to go |
| South Carolina | 4-3 | 2 wins to go |
| Texas A&M | 4-4 | 2 wins to go |
| Arkansas | 3-4 | 3 wins to go |
| Vanderbilt | 3-5 | 3 wins to go |
How bowl eligibility works
A team becomes bowl eligible by winning 6 of its 12 regular season games. Eligibility is not the same as an invitation: it makes a team available to be selected, and the bowls do the selecting once the regular season ends. Because six wins out of twelve games leaves no room to spare, a 7th loss ends the chase arithmetically, which is why teams at that mark are listed here as eliminated rather than still climbing.